Liverpool join Real Madrid and Barcelona in pursuit of teenage defensive talent | OneFootball

As soon as one European giant gets wind of what could be the next big thing, a number of other suitors tend to take notice too. That is the case for 16-year-old Georgian talent Saba Kharebashvili, who is making a name for himself in the Georgian league.

The 16-year-old left-back appeared in the summer in Dinamo Tbilisi’s Europa Conference League qualifier with Mornar Bar, his only senior appearance this season. However last year he was heavily involved in the first team, making a total of 27 appearances for Dinamo, and impressing sufficiently to attract interest beyond Georgian borders.

Back in November it was reported that Barcelona and Real Madrid had set their scouts the task of following his progress, and now according to Anfield Watch (via MD), Liverpool are also now lookinh Kharebashvili as a potential future option. Kharebashvili became the youngest player in UEFA competition history during that clash with with Mornar Bar, at the age of just 15, eclipsing the previous record set by Borussia Dortmund forward Youssoufa Moukoko.

Image via Les Transferts

Both of Spain’s giants have shown themselves willing to spend on teenage talents that they believe could make the first team, with Barcelona investing in Mikayil Faye, Pabo Torre, and more recently Ibrahim Diarra from Mali. Meanwhile Real Madrid tend only to commit if they believe the player could be one of a kind, spending what could reach up to €100m in transfer fees alone on Arda Guler and Endrick Felipe, who have a combined age of 38.

Barcelona appear to have their left-back for the time being in Alejandro Balde, but there is plenty of talk that they will look to bolster the position in this summer transfer window, albeit likely with a more experienced option than Kharebashvili. Meanwhile Real Madrid have doubts about the long-term future of their left-back position after missing out on Alphonso Davies.